More than 600 Kiambu county contract workers are demanding seven months' back pay.
Deputy Governor James Nyoro ordered that they be sacked.
Hundreds of workers, including casuals and enforcement officers, stormed county government offices on Wednesday.
They demanded to be paid Sh70,000 each, their monthly payment which has not been paid.
“We are seeking audience with the deputy governor to see to it that we are paid our dues since we were engaged by Governor Ferdinand Waititu, casual worker James Githiri said.
"We have not received any payment in seven months yet we were fired,” he said.
Nyoro said over the weekend said that enforcement officers contracted to collect revenue were harassing business people and looting businesses. He said their contracts should be cancelled.
The deputy governor was taking control of Kiambu government affairs since he had been locked out by Governor Waititu on county affairs.
Waititu was ordered by the High Court to keep off county government offices and not act officially on behalf of Kiambu until a corruption case of Sh588 million irregular tendering has been determined.
The workers accused Nyoro, who was holding a meeting in Limuru subcounty, of taking advantage of Waititu's exclusion to settle old scores.
We did a big job of getting these people out of alcoholism through Kaa Sober and now they are told to go home without being paid.
“Nyoro is taking advantage of the situation in the county to sack us and we were given the jobs by Waititu openly,” Charles Nderitu said.
Witeithie MCA James Macharia, commonly known as Taki, said the workers were employed through letters and not through short messages as purported and said any sacking should be done through letters.
Taki said the workers were hired through Waititu'se Kaa Sober programme of rehabilitating alcoholics and were engaged by the governor to keep them off liquor.
“We did a big job of getting these people out of alcoholism through Kaa Sober and now they are told to go home without being paid," Taki said.
He said they should all be reinstated and the deputy governor should sit down with all MCAs and forge a way forward.
Both the Constitution and the County Governments Act say that deputy governors should deputise for the governor but not nominate, appoint or dismiss employees.
(Edited by V. Graham)
